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A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life is a 1998 American computer-animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by John Lasseter, the film involves a misfit ant named Flik that is looking for "tough warriors" to save his colony from greedy grasshoppers, only to recruit a group of bugs that turn out to be an inept circus troupe. The film stars the voices of Dave Foley, Kevin Spacey, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and also featured Roddy McDowall's final film appearance before his death. The film is inspired by Aesop's fable The Ant and the Grasshopper. Production began shortly after the release of Toy Story in 1995. The screenplay was penned by Stanton and comedy writers Donald McEnery and Bob Shaw. The ants in the film were redesigned to be more appealing, and Pixar's animation unit employed new technical innovations in computer animation. During production, the filmmakers became embroiled in a public feud with DreamWorks Animation due to the production of their similar film Antz, which was released the same year. Randy Newman composed the music for the film. The film was released on November 25, 1998, and was a box office success, surpassing competition and grossing $363 million in receipts. It received positive reviews from film critics, who commended the storyline, witty dialogue and animation, while others unfavorably compared it to Antz. It was the first film to be digitally transferred frame-by-frame and released to DVD, and has been released multiple times on home video. Voice cast * Dave Foley as Flik * Kevin Spacey as Hopper * Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Princess Atta * Hayden Panettiere as Dot * Phyllis Diller as the Queen * Richard Kind as Molt * David Hyde Pierce as Slim * Joe Ranft as Heimlich * Denis Leary as Francis * Jonathan Harris as Manny * Madeline Kahn as Gypsy * Bonnie Hunt as Rosie * Michael McShane as Tuck and Roll * John Ratzenberger as P.T. Flea * Brad Garrett as Dim * Roddy McDowall as Mr. Soil * Edie McClurg as Dr. Flora * Alex Rocco as Thorny * David Ossman as Cornelius * Additional Voices: David L. Lander - Thumper, Lee Unkrich, Christina Milian, Jack Angel - Thud, Frank Welker - Bird, Rodger Bumpass - Mosquito, Kelsey Mulrooney, Mickie McGowan - Cockroach Waitress, Jennifer Darling - Female Ants, Debi Derryberry - Baby Maggots, Jordan Warkol, Kimberly J. Brown, Bill Farmer - Male Ants, Jordan Ranft, Jeff Pidgeon, Ryan O'Donohue, Russi Taylor, Jess Harnell, Paul Eiding - Male Ants, Bob Bergen - Aphie, Male Ants, John Fiedler, Carlos Alazraqui, Phil Proctor - Male Ants, Fly, Grasshoppers, Jan Rabson, John Lasseter - Harry the Mosquito, Jessica Evans, Travis Tedford, Brad Hall, Courtland Mead, Anthony Burch, Andrew Stanton, Francesca Smith & Sherry Lynn - Female Ants Songs * The Time of Your Life (performed by Randy Newman) Category:1998 films Category:1990s American animated films Category:Films directed by John Lasseter Category:Films produced by Darla K. Anderson Category:Films produced by Kevin Reher Category:Film scores by Randy Newman Category:Walt Disney Pictures Category:Pixar Animation Studios films Category:DVD Category:VHS Category:THX